WikiProfessional


WikiProfessional was an attempt to create a web-based research environment for semantic searching, providing an intuitive tool for analyzing and relating concepts.
When data is entered, the system semantically analyzed and recognized co-occurrences between different entities. The results were visualized through a "Knowlet," which is a visual representation of semantic distance between associated entities. This Knowlet is then used to notify persons that have subscribed to these entities, enabling a rapid data interchange between collaborators.
The major focus was proteins, using a portal named WikiProteins. It contained over a hundred million entries, "melding some of the key biomedical databases into a single information resource".
Sources included:
The project never passed the open beta test phase. It was operated by Knewco and led by initiator Barend Mons, a bioinformatician at the Erasmus MC and Leiden University Medical Centre. Knewco was intending to profit from WikiProfessionals by charging some users for "premium services", for example incorporating a private version of the system with in-house data.
After the project disappeared, a group called the Concept Web Alliance formed to try to rebuild a similarly linked database. This became ConceptWiki and the Nanopublication metadata format.